A Pastoral Letter for the Ecclesiastical New Year, 1st September 2021.
“Maker of the Universe, O Lord who alone have power over seasons and times: bless the Crown of the present Year with Your bounty, preserve our Country in safety and keep Your Church in peace, through the prayers of the Mother of God, and save us.” (Troparion, tone 2)
A Pastoral Letter for Easter, Holy and Glorious Pascha, 2021.
In his account of the salvific sufferings of our Lord, the Evangelist John, recounts how Jesus was brought before Pontius Pilate, the Prefect or Governor of Judea, for a definitive judgment. (Jn 18:28) When Jesus speaks of the truth, the cynical Pilate, ever the opportunist, retorts with the now famous question, “What is truth?” (Jn 18:38)
Once more we stand at the threshold of that Blessed Season which is the Great and Holy Lent. This year the Fast will begin on Monday, 15th February. This day, the seventh Monday before Pascha is traditionally known as Clean or Pure Monday, Καθαρά Δευτέρα. Our kitchens should be clean of all non-fasting foods and their derivatives.
Twelve months ago, as I prepared some Christmas thoughts to share with you, little could we know what the year ahead would bring. Who would ever have thought that we would find ourselves speaking about the “new normal”. This pandemic year has given us good reason to think upon the uncertainty of our daily affairs, and at the same time, to be keenly aware of the necessity of placing all things before the Good Lord.
A Pastoral Letter for the Feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and All the Bodiless Powers of Heaven, 8 November 2020.
